stevens



`LNG Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1L.

J. C. STEVENS.

GASKET LOWEAING APPARATUS.

No. 537,731. Patented Apr. V16, 1895.-

g\ Q A 1 l I l W 1,5 3 LEA l (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. C. STEVENS.

GASKET LOWERING APPARATUS.

Na. 537,731. Patented Apr. 16,1895.

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v rre STATES JOHN C. STEVENS, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THEGASKET LOWERING COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

CA-SKET-LOWERING APPARATUS.

EECE-GATION formng'part of Letters Patent No. 537,731, dated April 16,1895. Application ledvSeptemher 11,1894. Serial No. 522,734. (No model.)

To @ZZ wwn'v, t may concern:

Beit known that I, JOHN C. STEVENS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State ofConnecticut, have invented certain new and usefullmprovementsinCasket-Lowering Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to casket-lowering apparatus and has for itsobject to furnish an improved means of this general character whereby acasket may be lowered smoothly and evenly and positively controlledthrough- Vout its descent.

In the drawings accompanying and forming part of this specification,Figure 1 is a plan view of a casket -lowering apparatus constructed inaccordance with `my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinalsectionalside elevation of the same, the section Vbeing taken in linea--a, Fig. l. longitudinal, sectional plan ofthe same. Fig. 4 is anenlarged sectional view,`correspond ing to the right-hand portion ofFig. 2, showing one of the rope-guides in section. Fig. 5 is an enlargedsectional view corresponding to a portion of Fig. Fig. 6 is'a transversesection taken in line (QQ-2), Fig. 5. Fig. 7, is a sectional detailtaken in line c-c, Fig. 5, looking in the direction of the arrow.

Similar characters designate like parts in all of the figures. Y

According to my present invention I mount at one end of a suitable openframe, a plurality of rope-carrying drums carried by a common shaft, andprovide in connection with said drums means for rotating themsimultaneously and thereby paying out the ropes carried thereby withequal rapidity, guides for preventing knotting or kinking of the ropescarried by the drums and for winding and unwinding them smoothly andevenly, and means for automatically and simultaneously controlling allof said guides through the movements of the ropes in winding them uponor paying them out from the drums.

The framework for carrying the several 0perative details of the windingapparatus is preferably of oblong construction, as herein shown, isdesignated in a general way by F,

Fig. 3 is a horizontal,l

and has a central opening of similar shape. Each of the sides and endsof said frame is shown of a box like structure which, when viewed incross-section, is preferably7 of quadrantal form, and in these inclosingcasings are carried the operative devices for the windingdrums andtheguides for the ropes. Said cas ings are shown herein as provided with asubstantially continuous base, 2, having the per peudicular, innerwalls, 3, 3, and 3', 3, rising therefrom and connected wit-h the outeredges of the frame on three sides thereof by continuous sloping orrounded walls, 4, 4C and 4e', and upon the fourth side or end by asimilar .sloping or rounded wall extending part way across the frame ofthe apparatus and prefer.

ably a distance corresponding to that between the uprights 3, 3. All ofthis part of the framework is constructed, preferably, of wood, whilethe corner portions at each side or end ofthe sloping'member or cover 4are closed by metallic covers or casings, such as C. Each of saidmetallic casings is shown herein as a unitary structure, preferably ofthin castmetal, having a base-portion, 5, and an arched or roundedco'ver, 5', the upper forward edge of which is inperpendicular alignmentwith the forward lower edge thereof and adapted to abut against theadjacent ends'of the parts, 3, 4, and to form therewith continuoussurfaces. Said members C are also formed withsuitable verticalend-walls, 6 and 6'., to completely inclose the end-portions or cornersof the frame. Each of the outer uprights 6 is also shown formed with asubstantially central bearing,`

6, adapted to form a journal for the opposite ends of a shaft, S. Uponsaid shaft, and preferably at each end thereof, are mounted rope-windingdrums, D, herein shown as four in number, two at each end of the shaft,and

at opposite ends thereof, and a central annular ange, 8, adapted toisolate the coils of one rope from thoseof the other. It will be seen,therefore, that I apply the term drum not only to each single drumstructure, but also, and primarily, to each one of the drum ICO faces;as it is obvious that a number of drums or drum faces might be formedupon a common carrier by the provision of suitable spacing flanges ormembers.

The drums will usually be of the ordinary cylindrical type and will befixedly secured to the winding-shaft S in any suitable manner forrevolution therewith. Each pair of drums is also shown as inclosedbetween the end-walls, 6, 6, of the frame and the brackets' 9, 9,secured to the base 2 of the framework in any suitable manner, as bybolts, and having the uprights, 9', in line with the longitudinalmembers 3 of the f-rame. These uprights are shown as carrying bearings,9", in line with the outer bearings 6" of the frame and adapted to forminner journals for the shaft S whereby a long bearing is obtained ateach end thereof.

It will be understood, of course, that the metallic casings or coversCwill be suitably secured by their bases to the base 2 of the apparatus,as by bolts or screws.

As a means for actuating the Winding-shaft S,l have shown said shaftherein as carrying a worm-wheel, WV, fixedly secured thereto anddisposed centrally thereof. At each side of said worm-wheel a centralbearing is provided for said shaft, and these bearings are preferablyformed in the vertical members or up- 'rights, 10 and l0', of a casing,E, preferably formed as an integral structure, of cast metal, whichcasing is secured to the base 2 of the framework and also to thevertical member 3" of the frame and projects through the rounded member4" thereof, being centrallydisposed with relation to the two outerlongitudinal walls 4, 4, of the apparatus. These bearings, 12 land 12',are centrally-disposed upon said casing in alignment with each other andalso with the bearings in the outer casings or covers C.

A cap, E', is shown herein as provided for l the casing E, and assecured thereto by means of screws working in corresponding taps in thecasing, in the usual manner. rlhe casing and the cover are provided, asshown herein, with bearings, 13 and 14, respectively, disposed beyondthe periphery of the wormwheel WV and in vertical alignment with eachother. Said bearings are adapted to form journals for a stud, 15, whichis adapted to be held in place against vertical movement by the abutmentof the shoulders, 15', against u the inner ends of said bearings, thereduced end-portions, 15", of said stud being adapted for rotation inthe journals. A worm, W', shown herein as integral with said stud, but

which may be separately formed and fiXedlyv secured thereto, ispositioned to mesh with-the teeth of the worm-wheel W and to therebyrotate said worin-wheel and the drum-shaft S actuated thereby. Saidstudmay be actuated from any suitable source of power, a simple means foreffecting the rotation thereof being acrank, such as shown by dottedlines in Fig. 6.

Each of the drums is shown as provided with an automatically-shiftablerope-carrying guide, 16, adapted for guiding the rope while `being woundso that the successive coils thereof will be wound contiguous to oneanother and in parallel planes. Each of said guides is shown as havingapassageway, 16', at the under side thereof and tangentiallydisposed withrelation to and extending under the periphery of the drum, and havingoneend thereof in close proximity to the ropecarrying face of 'said drum,said guide-Way being adapted for receiving and guiding its correspondingrope, as R, during the winding and unwinding thereof. As a means forlshiftably supporting the rope-guide in posi.

tion, with relation to the face of the drum, said guide is preferably inthe form of an arm curved at the inner face thereof adjacent to theperiphery of the drum, so that the rope cannot pass, and is carried byits other end upon a supporting-rod, 17, which is shown as carriedinparallelism with the shaft S. Said rod is also shown as supported inaligned openings orguides in the respective uprights 9', 10, 10' and 9.The rope-guides are shown herein (see Fig. 7) as carried upon the armsof hangers, 18, secured to the ends of the rod, 17, said guides beingmounted upon the hangers in pairs, in the present instance, and sospaced that each of the -guide-ways 16' corresponds in position with theposition of the first coil of the rope controlled thereby, theorganization of the several guides with the carrier constituting amultiple rope-guide which co-operates with the several drum-faces.

As a means for holding the several ropeguides under the requisitetension during their shifting movements when winding the respectiveropes R, R', R2 and R3 upon the drums, or unwinding said ropestherefrom, I have shown the carrying-rod 17 forsaid guides as providedwith a retracting-devico, in the form of a spiral spring, 19,surrounding said rod or carrier and bearing at its inner end against theupright or fixed stop 10 and at its outer end against a stop, 20, whichis preferably adjustable upon said rod in longitudinal direction bymeans of a clamping-screw, such as 2l. This spring acts to retract ordraw all of the rope-guides andthe ropes carried thereby simultaneouslytoward one side of the apparatus, shown in the drawings as the lowerside thereof.

In practice each rope, (which term, it will be understood, is intendedto cover any flexible connecting means such as a belt, chain or metallictape,) will usually have one end thereof fixed, in a well-known manner,to the drum,

the several ropes being secured at corresponding ends of said severaldrums or carriers, and the opposite end of the rope will extend aroundsaid carrier or drum and through its corresponding guide-Way 16' in theguide 16, whence it is carried to a sheave or pulley mounted forrotation in a housing fixedly secured to the inner upright orframe-piece ICO IIC

3 of the apparatus. Four of said sheaves, J, J', J2 and J3, are shownherein, one `for each of the ropes, and disposed in pairs at successivepoints upon the inner sides of the frame, the sheaves of each pair beingdia-` metrically opposite each other. The corresponding housings forsaid sheaves or pulleys are designated, respectively, H, H', H2 and H3,and are shown as preferably secured in fixed positions upon the outersides of said frame-pieces 3. These housings are shown herein as formedintegral with the U-shaped brackets, 22, which are set intocorresponding grooves or slotsin the edges of the frame pieces 3 and aresecured thereto by suitable fastening devices. Between the vertical armsof these brackets, pulleys or friction-rollers, 23, are shown herein aspivoted for rotation, each of said rollers being set below the upperedge of the corresponding frame-piece 3 and substantially in line withthe sheave or pulley mounted in the adjacent housing. Each of the ropes,when it leaves its drum, passes to its particular sheave and around saidsheave and over the adjacent roller, through the guide-Way in thecorresponding bracket 22. In order to prevent the slipping'of the ropeout of its sheave or pulley, each of said housings is shownv as formedwith its inner face, which co-acts with the peripheral channel or grooveof the sheave, close to the peripheries of the flanges of its sheave orpulley, as clearly shown in Fig. 5, so that the space between the edgeof said anges and the guide-face 24 of the housing is insuflcient topermit the slipping of the rope off from the pulley when the ropes arerunning loosely with no weight upon them. Each set of coacting sheaves,friction -rollers and guide-ways I term an angle-guide, and by this termI include any equivalent means for detlecting the ropes and directingsaid ropes inwardly transversely of the frame.

Each of the ropes, when it passes over its corresponding frictionroller23, is4 carried -into the central space formed by the inner walls of"the frame, and the ends of the opposing pairs of ropes are rconnectedby a suitable detaching-device which may be of any well-knownconstruction, and one form of which is shown herein. In the deviceillustrated, a link, 25, is fastened to the free end of one of theropes, and carries at its center and its opposite end two other links,26 and 27, the former of which is preferably straight and formed with alongitudinal slot, and the latter of which is curved to form a hook, thepoint of which is adapted to be engaged by said slot, 26', in thestraight link. Each of said links 2G and 27 is pivoted to the link 25for free movement thereon, and the free end of the opposite rope carriesa suitable link, 28, which engages said curved arm 27 and is adapted toride loosely thereon. As shown herein, each pair of ropes is providedwith one of said detaching devices, and the opposite free end of eachlink 26 is attached to one end of a pull-rope, 29. Both of said ropespreferably pass through a common guideway, 30, which may be extendedthrough the frame at any convenient point and is preferably centrallydisposed.

It will be observed that, when the casket is to be supported by theropes, the curved link of each detaching device will be engaged by itspoint in the slot or eye ofthe (3o-operating straight linkof saiddevice, and that a Iirm connection is thus secured between the ropes ofeach oppositely-disposed pair, and that, when the casket has beenlowered, a slight pull upon the ropes 29 will sever the connection andpermit the carrier ropes to be rewonnd upon their respective drums orreels.

In order to provide for the uniform winding of the ropes R, R', R2 andR3, upon Vtheir respectivel drums, said ropes should be of such lengththat when connected as shown in Fig. 3, each drum or reel will carry thesame number of turns or coils as the others, and hence in paying outsaid ropes to their full length the casket would still be maintained ina horizontal position.

In order to obtain an even movement of the casket, during the operationof lowering the same, it is essential that the coils of the ropes shallhave been wound smoothly and evenly upon the reels, and to obtain thenecessary precision and-uniformity of the winding of the coils of saidropes is the object of the guides 16. l At the beginning of theoperation of winding the ropes said guides will, in consequence of theretractive action of their spring 19, be in position contiguous to theend-Hanges of the drums, and the ropes carried by said guides will be inproper position for being wound to form the first coil upon each of thereels. Upon the rotation of said reels by means of the worm and crank,in the direction for winding, the first coil of each series will bewound upon its corresponding drum, after which the rope when it arrivesat a point adjacent to the starting point of the first coil will becarried sidewise, together with the guide 16 so that the second coilwill be wound upon the drum contiguous to the first coil, the tensionexerted upon the ropeguide by the spring I9 insuring a close contactbetween successive coils and at the same time preventing over-ridingofsaid coils. This operation of the apparatus, it will be obvious, isreversed when unwinding the ropes from their reels, and the guides willbe gradu-f ally carried back until, if the ropes are entirely unwound,said guides will again lie against the respective lianges 8 and 8 at oneside and 8 and 8 at the opposite side, of the apparatus, as will beevident by reference to Fig. 3. In practice the channels or ways 16 inthe guides will be of such length that any kinks or knots in the ropeswill be straightened out in passing therethrough and before reaching thedrum. Said ways are, as shown, disposed tangentially to the drums at thepoints of contact of the ropes therewith and IOO IIO

A pulleys.

My present improvements constitute a very strong, compact and simple4apparatus of the character described, by means of which a casket may belowered smoothly and evenly and Without strain upon the operative partsof the mechanism,and Withoutliability of accident, all features of greatimportance in apparatus of this class. The arrangement of the carrierdrums is of special importance as serving to provide a long bearing foreach end of the shaft, whereby the weight of the casket is thoroughlydistributed over the journal surfaces, and the drums being all on asingle shaft, all connecting gearing, and all liability of breakage ofthe same are entirely avoided. Also, the character of the combination issuch that an effective, and in every way superior apparatus, can bemanufactured and kept in order at a relatively loW cost.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. In an apparatus of thecharacter described, the combination with a frame, of a winding-shaftjournaled therein, means for rotating said shaft, rope-carrying drumsrotatively carried by said shaft, a series of ropeguides one for eachdrum, and a retractingdevice for automatically maintaining each of saidguides in contact with the coil next adjacent to that carried by saidguide, substantially as described.

2. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with aframe, of a winding-shaft journaled therein, means for rotating saidshaft, rope-carrying drums rotatively 'carried by said shaft, alongitudinally-movable carrier adjacent to said drums, a series ofrope-guides one for each drum and secured to said carrier, and a springconnected With said carrier and with the frame and' adapted forautomatically maintaining each of said guides in contact with the coilnext adjacent to that carried by said guide, substantially as described.

3. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with aframe, of a winding-shaft journaled therein, means for rotating saidshaft, rope-carrying drums rotatively carried by said shaft, alongitudinally-movable carrier adjacent to said drums, a series ofrope-guides one for each drum and secured to said carrier and havingrope-receiving guide-Ways contiguous to the winding faces of said drums,and a spring connected with said carrier and with the frame and adaptedfor automatically maintaining each of said guides in contact with thecoil next adjacent to that carried by said guide, substantially asdescribed.

4. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with asuitable open frame, of a Winding-shaft mounted on the frame and havinga plurality of drum-faces, means for rotating said shaft, a plurality ofropes secured one to each of said drum-faces and extending out tosuccessive points in the length of the sidesof said frame, means at saidpoints for deiiecting said ropes transversely of said frame, means fordetachably connecting the free ends of the opposite ropes in pairs, aseries of rope-guides one for each ofsaid drum-faces, and a retractingdevice for automatically maintaining each of said guides in contact withthe coil next adjacent to that carried by said guide, substantially asdescribed.

J Ol-I'N C. STEVENS. Witnesses:

W. N. WOODRUFF, ABRAM SMITH.

